What is a sperm bank?
A semen bank is the place where previously frozen semen samples are stored. These sperm samples can be used in the future to have offspring through an assisted reproduction technique, either artificial insemination (AI) or in vitro fertilization (IVF).
Frozen seminal samples are stored in liquid nitrogen tanks at a temperature of -196ºC. Under these conditions, the quality of the semen is not altered. For this reason, the sperm can be kept in the bank for an indefinite period of time.
In the sperm bank there will be both samples from donors and from patients who have decided to freeze their semen for some reason. Among them are:
- Oncology patients.
- Patients undergoing a vasectomy.
In addition, those men who cannot attend the day of the ovarian puncture for IVF can also freeze their semen sample. In this way, the sperm sample will be thawed on the day of the ovarian puncture to fertilize the ovules obtained.
